Will this be the year for Ange-Gabriel? “I don’t want to jinx it,” said AG coach Luc Guénette.

The local French school has yet to hang a LGSSAA championship banner in their gym in any sport. The last two years, AG, on the Grade 7 and 8 intermediate side, won banners at the Franco provincial championships, but this year they’re hoping to put something beside it with a piece of decoration that represents dominance closer to home.

AG has their best shot at winning a LGSSAA championship with this year’s junior girls basketball team. Better than they’ve ever had before.

Now that’s a fair bit of pressure to put on a team, but some of Ange’s stress has already been relieved this season.

This particular group of Ange players went into the season having won the last 55 games they played. This year they started the season with a Kingston-hosted tournament and lost their first game in two years. Instead of sulking about the streak being over, they embraced the chance to move on.

“They needed to lose,” said Guénette. “They were actually happy. They were like, ‘OK, we got our first loss.’I think for them it was more stress to keep the streak alive. Now that the stress has left I think they’re playing better.”

Simply put, Ange has the horses to make a run for their first title.

Lexi Joli-Coeur is likely the tallest player in the junior girls division this year. She is a major asset in getting rebounds and disrupting opponents trying to crash the net.

Chloé Lapointe has skill, but it’s impressive when you hear her coach teammates and say wisdom like, “Don’t force it,” when she sees them contemplate making a risky pass.

Nyah Robichaud seems calm in almost every situation, whether it’s on a fast-break or setting up a play.

She could likely start on some senior teams right now as a Grade 9.

Aislinn Davey has tremendous shooting range, a taller player that can bang under the net or shoot outside the key.

Brooklyn Birtch is relatively new to basketball, but is solid on defence with the way she glides with her opponents side-to-side.

“They work hard and they don’t miss practice. They’re here at 2:30 p.m. and they’re here at lunch time,” said Guénette.

AG’s matchup against the St.

Michael Mustangs on Thursday is probably a good example for the type of team Ange is and how unassuming they can be. St. Michael’s bench was filled with about 10 players, plus the five girls on the court playing. When you looked over at AG – a school with an enrollment of a little more than 60 students – they had just three on the bench. The Mustangs actually had more substitutes than Ange had players on their roster.

Then when you looked up at the scoreboard it read AG was leading 22-7 at the end of the first quarter. Their lead swelled to 26 points before going on to win 64-18 to push their record to 3-0. Thursday’s game continued Ange’s stretch of ballooning leads after beating North Grenville by 18 points to start the season and following it up by separating themselves from Rideau by 28 points.

AG looks smooth beyond their years and move more like a senior team than a junior squad. They could probably give some senior teams a run for their money this year. AG swings the ball around the arc, showing patience before deciding to move closer to the net or shoot from a distance. Whether it’s Violette Neelin or Samantha McDougall, teammates weave in and out of each other, acting almost like a human game of three-card Monte where they make it hard for opponent’s to stick to the player they’re covering.

AG’s defence is strong and consistent. They stay on top of opponents, but don’t cross the line in their aggressiveness to the point where they get called for fouls. They act more like pests with the way they get in an opponent’s face and get them to make more mistakes.

Ange’s best part might be their communication, though. You might get the idea that Lapointe is the leader with the way she guides her team and then you’ll hear Robichaud call out a play. You’ll hear Joli-Coeur direct traffic for AG and then notice Misha Ballerscheff making some adjustments of her own. It can be a fine line between cluttered communication and great teamwork. Ange Gabriel is definitely the latter with the way they all compliment each other.

The biggest compliment of all might be a LGSSAA banner hanging in the gym.

“I’m hard on communication on defence,” said Guénette. “Defence for me is the most important thing in the game. I tell my girls 10 points per quarter, that’s all we’re allowed to give them.”